An overwhelming majority of IT professionals and leaders reported that their organization does not have all the required technology skills in-house to address organizational needs, according to a recent survey from TEKsystems. A significant share of IT leaders said many candidates lack preferred tech skills and/or "soft" skills, and that the job pool is often too small to find the right fit for an open position. As a result, team members are often less efficient, deliver lower quality work or experience greater stress, among other consequences. "The IT skills gap is real and is [affecting] organizations' abilities to be successful, and it can lead to a vicious cycle of lower employee morale, inefficiency and attrition," says Jason Hayman, research manager for TEKsystems. "The cycle can only be broken by deliberate, careful analysis of the skills needed to achieve organizational goals. A well-defined workforce strategy is by far the most effective weapon organizations can deploy to combat the IT skills gap." The findings also shed light on why some tech pros are having a difficult time finding a job. More than 1,300 IT leaders and professionals took part in the research.